Skip links and keyboard navigation

Warning: ThinkYourWay.edu.au may contain the names and images of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people now deceased.ThinkYourWay.edu.au also contains links to sites that may use names and images of Aboriginal and Islander people now deceased.

We’ll help you get there

Do you find that sometimes life doesn’t seem that easy and there can be lots of different challenges in getting ahead and reaching out for your dreams? How can you remain resilient in the face of adversity and keep focused on your goals? Will you give in to the challenges you face, or will you resolve to remain focused on your goals and to achieve all that you possibly can?

Think Your Way! There has never been a better time to ‘challenge’ the challenges!

Come meet some mob that ‘challenge the challenges’ and challenge you to Think Your Way!

You don’t have to know right now but here’s your first challenge… are you ready to think your way?

Get inside your head and start thinkin’ big – it’s pretty deadly to have big ideas for life after school.

Share them with your friends and family too, because everyone needs a fan club along the way. Yeah!

It’s your light bulb moment and it belongs to you so be sure to write your big ideas down or even text them to yourself. And change them whenever you feel the need.

Keep your big ideas close, so when times get tough or just plain blah, they help you keep thinkin’ big.

Remember… it’s deadly to Think Your Way.

Sometimes it's hard to imagine life after school – getting a job, studying, moving out of home, going to uni, buying a car. What's next? Challenge No. 1 encourages you to start thinking big because anything is possible.

Challenge 2 - Get Prepped

Voice 1: Yo bro… Back up a bit…. Before you head to higher education you sometimes need to do ‘pre-requisite’ subjects in senior. That’s fancy talk for stuff you need to do to help you get into the course you wanna do at uni.

Voice 2: Whaaaatttttttt??

Voice 1: Yo! Don’t sweat it! First up check out what you’re gonna need – math, science, English, whatever…. You just need to make a start so you’re not bumpin’ round in the dark….. Have a yarn with your teachers or career counsellors who can help you get in the know and on your way.

Voice 2: Are you for real?

Voice 1: Yeah cuz, it’s no biggie. When you know what you gotta do and you dig in and do the work, you’ll be rockin’ it by the time uni offers places.

And lots of unis have Indigenous Study Units* to help our mob get into uni and stay there until they’re done.

Voice 2: No way bro! I’m in!

Voice 1: Get prepped dudes to Think Your Way.

*Note: each university may refer to their local Indigenous support services in different ways e.g. Indigenous Education Units; Indigenous Support Units; School of Indigenous Australian Studies; Indigenous Institute etc., and may include Aboriginal and/ or Torres Strait Islander language in the naming title, as relevant to the local area.

Each university degree has its own requirements for entry. These are things like having done a particular maths or science subject or compiled an art portfolio. Challenge No.2 reminds you to think about what you might need to do to be prepared for uni and where you can get some help, if you need it.

Challenge 3 - Stay in School

Voice 2: I’m blowing this stand to hang with ma mates. Ain’t into school, with all them essays and tests. Fries my brain ya know. Rather be free and easy.

Voice 1: Whoa Bro! Now you’re talkin. Hanging at the shops and down by the park. Muckin’ around with friends, cruisin’. Life’s mighty fine outside the line.

Voice 2: Yeah cuz. That’s me. No one expects nothin’ from me so I’m doin’ it my own way.

Voice 1: That’s cool bro… Just hang with ya mates, do ya own thang. Forget school, it ain’t cool… who says you need to learn stuff, get a cool job, dress to impress, move outta home and leave all this?

Voice 2: Say what?

Voice 1: Yeah man. Do nothin’ and all this could be yours!

Voice 2: Don’t be gammon cuz? Watcha sayin? I am doin’ my thang and that’s the way I roll.

Voice 1: I’m just sayin’ bro. It don’t have to be this way. You can hang with ya mates and have all this OR you can be cool and stay in school and then really do your own thang. There’s a whole wide world out there ya know?

Voice 2: Huh???

Voice 1: Man oh man. Is anyone home? Listen to me bro, it isn’t always sweet but trust me, it’s cool to go to school and see it through. It’s your ticket to big.

Voice 2: Well big is me, so I guess I’m back in.

Voice 1: So where you goin’ now bro?

Voice 2: Back to school ya idiot!

Voice 1: Cool man. Think Your Way bro.

If you don’t go to school and complete your senior year it can make it harder to go on to uni and other career pathways. Challenge No.3 explores in a fun way, why it's cool to stay in school.

Challenge 4 - Look a Little Closer

Voice 1: High school for me was nothin’ like I imagined…… I actually liked it.

Voice 2: Say what??????

Voice 1: Yeah dude. I know right. Deadly!

Voice 2: How so cuz?

Voice 1: Well apart from hanging with my crew, I’m puttin’ it down to Mr Mac. My math teacher…… I know right!

Voice 2: Bro! Did you hit your head or somethin’? You just said your math teacher was cool.

Voice 1: Ha ha. No man. Mr Mac was cool – well that is apart from his high pants and bad hair – that ponytail was NOT cool!

But when I was bombing on just about everything and ready to walk he was like on it. He worked out how my MEGA brain ticked and somehow I not only passed math but the other stuff too.

Voice 2: Bro. You’re surely talking out your butt!

Voice 1: I’m telling you dude. It all started with gettin’ me and some other dudes messing around with this techie stuff once a week and before we knew it we’d built this cool little robot just like something out of a TV. Man it made by brain hurt but Mr Mac said we all had it in us to do something bigger than runnin’ amuck.

Voice 2: Gammon man. Now what?

Voice 1: Well dude. Mr Mac is still like being all cool at my school teaching MEGA brains like me. And next year coz I passed eh, I’m actually headin’ to uni. A first for my mob.

Challenge No.4 captures a light-hearted moment when a student recalls how his school life changed for the better after one of his favourite teachers, encouraged him (and his mates) to try something new.

Challenge 5 - Get in the Know

Voice 2: ……. sorry cuz ….. just thinkin’ about me taking on the world… ya know after school when I’m all grown up.

Voice 3: You mean like a Kardashian?

Voice 2: Yeah right oh – like a Kardashian. Not!!!! No I mean like work and study and stuff. Makes my head spin, it feels sooooo big.

Voice 1: Sis it is big but it’s about getting in the know. Ya know?

Try and think about the big picture. What are the kinda of things you love doing and could those things be turned into a career?

Voice 3: You mean like a Kardashian? Kim loves shopping.

Voice 1: No Sis! Like how you love animals – ever thought about studying to become a vet?

Voice 2: Yeah that’d be deadly but don’t you need to be like a science geek?

Voice 1: Kinda but that’s where you talk to your teachers about the stuff you need to do in year 11 and 12 to get you ready. If you’re keen, they’ll be keen to help. And the sooner, the better. There’s also heaps of deadly info online about which uni does what, how you can get help to pay for it and the kinda jobs you can get when you graduate. A great place to start is with your school career counsellor. You can also talk to the Indigenous Study Units* which some unis have – they’re dedicated to helping our mob get through their studies. So you see Sis, it is BIG, but you can do it …but you have to crack a plan and get in the know.

Voice 2: Get out. Me, one day a vet??? Cooooolllll!!.

Voice 3: Do you think Kim Kardashian went to uni?

Voice 1 and 2: Sissssss!

*Note: each university may refer to their local Indigenous support services in different ways e.g. Indigenous Education Units; Indigenous Support Units; School of Indigenous Australian Studies; Indigenous Institute etc., and may include Aboriginal and/ or Torres Strait Islander language in the naming title, as relevant to the local area.

Challenge No.5 encourages students to empower themselves by ‘getting in the know’ about what they might like to do one day after high school. It reminds them to think about their interests, how these might lead to a career and to do some ‘homework’ on what this might look like sooner rather than later.

Voice 1: Bub, ya gotta show them what ya can do. Go out, do ya nursing and then come back home if ya want and work in your community, help your mob. Make us proud. Now hurry up, we gotta go.

Voice 2: Ma, how come you didn’t go to uni?

Voice 1: Bub, things were different back then. People didn’t expect much from us/our mob but it’s time to change that. Forget shame. Now come on luv. We won’t make the plane.

Voice 2: Ma….. Do you think I’ll be a deadly nurse? What if I hate uni and studying and being away?

Voice 1: Bub, you can do it. This is your time.

Voice 2: Ma ….

Voice 1: What now Bub?????

Voice 2: We gotta go!

Sometimes when you’re the first to do something in your family, it’s overwhelming, scary even. Are you doing the right thing? Will you bring shame to the family? In Challenge No.6 Sis knows all too well how this feels as she gets ready to leave home and go to uni.

Challenge 7 - Getting to Deadly

A few years back, I decided school wasn’t for me. My teachers didn’t get me. I didn’t feel like I belonged. Shame held me back. That was until I met Kirralee through a school outreach program.

Kirralee was just like me – she had bad stuff goin’ on at home and at school. She said no one understood her or her mob. But then she found her way with some help of a teacher who she connected with and through her Aunties and Uncles who kept reminding her shame was no good. She finished year 12, did a bridging course to uni and is now studying to be a teacher.

Hangin’ out with Kirralee, helped me feel better about myself. Not like talking myself up or anythin’ but seein’ all the good things she was doin’, made me feel I can do it too.

It’s really hard sometimes but I am back at school and after year 12 I’m going to study technology. It might take me a while but I don’t wanna be gammon with my life. Kirralee reckons I’ll make a solid computer geek.

It feels deadly to be changin’ things up and not be shame. I’m proud to have a place in the world. Too Deadly!

Challenge No.7 shares Kirralee’s story - reminding you there is more than one way to get to deadly. Even if you’ve mucked up, had bad stuff happen and made mistakes, don’t give up. There is always a way.

Pathways to Uni

So you’re thinking about going to uni but you don’t know where to begin? Take a look at this step-by-step guide to make it easier.

There are a number of pathways to gain entry into university.

The most common pathway involves finishing Year 12, studying at TAFE or another tertiary institution like a technical college or centre of excellence. Depending on which state or territory you live in, this will give you a rank, overall position or Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR).

Each uni course has entry requirements – these are the things you need to successfully enrol in your preferred course like having done particular subjects, for example a type of math or science, preparation of a portfolio and having a certain rank or ATAR.

Another pathway if you didn’t finish Year 12 or haven’t been to TAFE or another tertiary institution is to gain entry to uni based on your work or life experience. This is called an alternate entry where you may need to do a Personal Competencies Assessment or a Special Tertiary Admissions Test.

There are also dedicated programs to help Indigenous students gain the academic skills required for uni.

To help better understand exactly what you need to enrol, talk to a career adviser, your preferred uni or the tertiary admission centre in your state or territory.

You can also talk to the Indigenous Study Units* at the uni you’d like to attend. They can also help with information on available financial support and scholarships.

Once you’re ready to enrol, applications are generally made through the state and territory admissions centre where you plan to attend, by a published due date. The tertiary admissions centre then processes your application and if successful, will offer you a place in one of your preferred courses.

You can accept the first offer or wait and see what happens in later rounds. It’s a good idea to talk to someone at the Indigenous study unit*, uni or tertiary admissions centre if you’re not sure.

The pathway into uni might not always be easy but will be worth it in the end.

So go on, take the first step and start planning your pathway into uni.

Visit www.thinkyourway.edu.au.

It’s your chance to Think Your Way.

*Note: each university may refer to their local Indigenous support services in different ways e.g. Indigenous Education Units; Indigenous Support Units; School of Indigenous Australian Studies; Indigenous Institute etc., and may include Aboriginal and/ or Torres Strait Islander language in the naming title, as relevant to the local area.

So you’re thinking of going to uni but don’t know where to begin? Take a look at this step by-by-step guide to help make things a little clearer and easier.